Former Duke basketball star wants Cooper Flagg on Team USA for 2024 Olympics
A Blue Devil hero thinks Cooper Flagg should play among NBA players this summer
An incoming Duke basketball freshman playing with the best players in America during the Olympics?
It's a farfetched idea but one that Austin Rivers is clamoring for.
Team USA announced 11 players that will be suiting up for the Olympics, leaving one roster spot open and much debate as to who it should be awarded to.
Rivers, on ESPN's NBA Today, said that it doesn't matter who get the final spot on the given the firepower that is already on the roster with LeBron James, Steph Curry, and Kevin Durant.
"I don't know how to diagnose this," Rivers said of the vacant spot. "I guess my answer would be doesn't it matter? The team is loaded. This roster is ridiculous."
The former Blue Devil is calling for an unconventional way of thinking for Team USA, "Grab Cooper Flagg...make him the 12th guy,"
It would be unprecedented for Flagg to join the Olympic squad as Christian Laettner was the last player to be put on the United States' roster without any NBA experience since 1992.
"The experience it would give him. You're talking about grooming players for tomorrow and what that experience would do for these young talented players, especially in a draft class where you don't have a lot of star power," he continued.
"Throw the biggest star in there, throw Cooper Flagg in there, it makes sense."
Grant Hill, a former Duke superstar, is the managing director of USA Basketball.
"Grant Hill is a Dukie, get it done," Rivers said.
ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski quickly shut the idea down saying, "Those days are over...they aren't bringing in any college players with this group."
The team already has former Duke standout Jayson Tatum on its roster and shortly after the debate, USA Basketball announced that the final roster spot would go to Kawhi Leonard of the Los Angeles Clippers.
Cooper Flagg will instead be preparing for his freshman year at Duke this summer in which he headlines the No. 1 recruiting class in the country and could make his Olympic debut in 2028.
feed